Oplotnica - Kebelj castle (Castle Zajec)

Access to the starting point:
a) From the motorway Ljubljana - Maribor take the exit Slovenske Konjice, then follow the signs for Slovenske Konjice. From the roundabout after the OMV petrol station, take the first exit to the right towards Slovenska Bistrica, and from Slovenska Bistrica take the road to the left to Oplotnica and Osankarici. Turn towards Oplotnica and follow the road to the centre of the town, where you can park in one of the several car parks in the settlement.
b) From the motorway Maribor - Ljubljana, take the exit Slovenska Bistrica - South, then follow the signs for Slovenske Konjice. Shortly after Slovenska Bistrica, turn right towards Oplotnica, then drive to the centre of Oplotnica, where you can park in one of several car parks in the village.

Path description:
From the centre of the village, follow the path towards Osankarice, Černý jezero and Treh Kraljev, first walking along the pavement past the Mercator shop, the Pohorski Bataljona Oplotnica primary school to the Salama pizzeria, where you turn left and then immediately right, passing the pizzeria on your right.
The way forward begins to climb visibly on a narrower asphalt road, which leads us past occasional houses, and when we arrive in the Lačna Gora settlement, we also have a beautiful view of Oplotnica and the surrounding hills.
Higher up, at the cross, the signs for the Black Lake direct us to the right, where we pass the last house, after which we continue our ascent on the dirt road, soon turning left into the woods on a marked footpath. Climb steeply through the woods, cross the dirt road you have recently left, and then climb moderately to reach the Church of Sts.
At the church, return to the road and continue north. The road quickly turns into the cart track, which leads you first through the forest and then across a grassy viewpoint, where you descend a little.
When you reach the asphalt road in the village Kebelj, cross it crosswise to the right, then go left towards the Black Lake, passing the nearby house on your right. After a few minutes of a scenic climb over a grassy slope, when you reach the end of the asphalt road, there is a trail on your right, starting at the cemetery in the village of Kebelj.
Continue straight ahead on the marked cart track, which turns right before entering the forest and continues along the edge of the forest, and from the above-mentioned cart track, signs direct you to the left onto the narrower cart track, which continues through the forest. Follow the markings through the forest, and when the path turns slightly to the right, after a short crossing, another path from the village of Kebelj joins us from the right.
Go left here and you will quickly reach the ruins of Kebelj Castle.
Oplotnica - St. Mohor 0:45, St. Mohor - Zajčev castle 0:40.
Description and pictures refer to the situation in April 2022.

On the way: Lačna Gora (516m), Sveti Mohor (Lačna Gora) (602m)

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